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Mobile phone bans FIMHWell recently led one of the world’s first formal evaluations of a school-based mobile phone ban, conducted in partnership with the South Australian Department of Education. This natural experiment, led by Professor Daniel King, examined how the state-wide ban affected secondary students’ wellbeing and school experiences. The evaluation found that the ban was linked to lower levels of psychological distress and fewer negative emotions among students8. Importantly, this work also sought to understand young people’s perspectives. Many students reported challenges with the ban such as feeling less trusted and independent, losing access to digital learning tools, and finding it harder to manage stress at school without their phones. At the same time, students described benefits in face-to- face social interaction, personal health and safety, and classroom engagement. Some students suggested that instead of a full ban, schools could focus on teaching responsible phone use and supporting young people to manage devices with more flexibility and personal choice9. This work provides rare academic evidence on the impacts of digital device bans in secondary schools and demonstrates the critical role of research-policy partnerships in
shaping youth mental health policy. It highlights the value of listening not only to health outcomes but also to the lived experiences of young people when evaluating education and wellbeing initiatives. Some of our other recent digital innovation highlights include: You Can’t Do It All and That’s Okay: A tailored approach to living well Challenge and collaborators Many wellbeing programs offer a flood of advice and strategies – often overlooking the reality that people have limited time, energy and resources. This likely contributes to high disengagement rates, with up to 50% of users abandoning mental health apps within 100 days 10 . This project recognises that ‘you can’t do it all’, designing a personalised digital wellbeing program tailored to each user’s unique wellbeing priorities. Led by FIMHWell, in collaboration with the University of Twente’s Centre for E-Health and Wellbeing Research (the Netherlands) and industry partner, Be Well Co (Australia). Innovation and impact This project is the first digital approach to provide personalised psychoeducation and evidenced- based activities across 11
dimensions of wellbeing. Our digital tool offers dynamic action planning and check-ins every second day, to track engagement and barriers in real time and measures both wellbeing outcomes and one’s empowerment to live well. Our pilot findings support changes in wellbeing (reported by over 50% of participants) and strong program engagement (77%). As one user reflected “[This program] helped me discover that there are many possibilities in my life”. The tailored approach may offer a scalable, sustainable way to promote mental wellbeing and reduce disengagement at the population-level. Right Care Right Place: Eating disorder care in my community Challenge and collaborators Australia’s eating disorder care system is fragmented, with gaps in prevention, early identification, treatment access, and workforce capability. These shortcomings affect both community members and health professionals, particularly in regional and remote areas. Funded by the Australian Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, the Right Care Right Place (RCRP) initiative is a new collaboration between the Australian National Eating
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